John jolts Blacks in second half as Quins win again (From Western Telegraph)

John jolts Blacks in second half as Quins win again

Neyland 18 Pembroke Dock quins 38

Pembroke Dock Harlequins scored 33 second-half points without reply to beat Neyland at the Athletic Ground, the All Blacks using the breeze and slope well in the first period but running out of steam in their first match of the campaign against a fit and committed Quins' side which was forced to make five changes from the previous week because of injury and the shut-down at Texaco.

Trailing by 18-5 at half time, the Quins forced the All Blacks into making errors and grabbed four tries in the third quarter before defending well late on to seal a good away win.

Leading the way with a try hat-trick was winger Adi John, only drafted in because Gareth Lewis, scorer of four tries the previous week, was with his wife and new baby.

Neyland started with Mark Riley at scrum half and Delme Bateman at centre and both made an impact on play with their darting runs as the game started at a frenetic pace.

But the Quins still had the first scoring chance as Tom Lewis screwed a penalty wide before an astute kick to the corner by Neyland pivot Nicky Greggain put his side in attack mode, Riley and hooker Craig Bennett making little runs and Tony Busby perfectly placed to cross for a quality try by the second row as reward for all his endeavour.

The lead was short-lived as the Quins bounced back with a try scored by John, who initiated the move with a clever run out of defence before linking with Jason Griffiths and Gareth Scourfield before skipper Darren Gibby supplied the scoring pass on the right.

But Neyland went ahead again as Riley landed penalties from 40 and 50 metres, with Lewis missing a far easier kick at the other end as the Quins tried to claw their way back.

Bateman almost unlocked the Quins defence with a barn-storming run down the middle, only for the final pass to go astray - but the All Blacks maintained the pressure with another Riley snipe and charge from prop Ben Lloyd before No 8 Chris Busby crashed through at the posts for Riley to convert.

There were those among the Neyland pundits who felt a 13-point lead wasn't enough and they were soon proved right as the Quins moved up a gear and almost scored from the kick-off as Jason Griffiths, Gibby and Gareth Scourfield took play close but a knock-on gave Neyland a breather.

They were soon reducing the deficit, however, after a series of close-range scrums allowed Gareth Scourfield to pick up and feed No 9 Griffiths, who gave Adi John the easy scoring pass.

The Quins added another try almost from the kick-off as Jason Griffiths kicked through and good possession was secured by Brendan O'Driscoll and martin Cunningham so that Lee Griffiths was able to celebrate his first match in five years with a try, Lewis adding the simple extras to take the Quins within a point of their neighbours.

Lee Griffiths thought he had scored again in the bottom corner but Quins' coach and touch judge Lenny Scourfield sportingly raised the flag for a marginal foot in touch.

But with replacements Gary Burns and Cunningham acting as ball carriers from their fresh legs, the Quins took the lead when Neyland tried to relieve the pressure with a quickly-taken penalty from Mark Riley but Tom Lewis intercepted a careless pass under the posts and gave Gibby the chance to power his way over for Lewis to convert.

Even worse was to follow for the All Blacks because another Neyland attack broke down on the Quins 10-metre line and winger Lee Scourfield showed his pace and determination as he out-paced the cover and sped 60 metres for a killer try which Lewis goaled.

But Neyland deserve credit for the way that they kept plugging away and with the Quins having O'Driscoll and Ian Osborne yellow-carded they almost scored via livewire flankers Simon Phillips and Adi Riley, plus Mark Riley, who was hauled down inches short in the stand corner by Lee Scourfield's superb tackle.

Quins' coaches Scourfield and Neil Machin will have been pleased by the way that their 13 men defended and with a full complement they added another try late on when Kevin Bratcher intercepted a loose pass and gave Adi John his third try, which Lewis did well to convert - and the Quins were good value for a win while Neyland coach Mark Hamer will have taken a number of plusses from his side's first match, as well as the need to cut out unforced errors which cost them dearly in this entertaining tussle that was again a great advert for local rugby.

The match sponsors were WP Lewis and Son Ltd, with the match ball supplied by John and Jennifer Laugharne (Neyland).